Panthers come up short, fall to Redlands in final minutes
REDLANDS, Calif. – The Chapman University football team was unable to convert on a pair of short yardage fourth downs before host University of Redlands marched 70 yards on its final drive to come-from-behind and defeat the visiting Panthers 21-17 at Ted Runner Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Senior QB Dan Selway's 1-yard touchdown run was the game-winner with 1:37 left in the game.
Leading by three, earlier in the quarter Chapman (4-5) had two drives into Redlands' territory and was faced with 4th-and-1 and 4th-and-2. On both occasions the Panthers came up short of the first down and were unable to keep the drives alive.
However, it was a controversial goal line fumble in the first quarter that haunted Chapman in the end. The Panthers trailed 7-0 after Redlands scored a touchdown on its opening drive. Chapman then capitalized on a Bulldogs' fumble in their second possession as senior DB Jake Meyer picked up the loose ball at the Chapman 47 and returned it 27 yards into Redlands territory.
Three plays later, Chapman senior RB Akio Lloyd scrambled seven yards to the goal line, where the ball was fumbled as he was tackled. Postgame video and photos show Lloyd had possession of the ball across the goal line before the ball came loose. However, the ruling on the field was a fumble and Redlands recovered it for a touchback. Lloyd finished with 52 yards rushing in the final game of his career, totaling 1,202 rushing yards in his career.
The Panthers got on the board officially in the second quarter, driving to the Redlands 21 yard line before sophomore K Mauricio Alfonso kicked a 38-yard field goal to make the score 7-3 in favor of the Bulldogs. Redlands threatened again in the closing minutes of the first half, but Chapman senior DB Jake Fey picked off Selway in the endzone to keep the score 7-3 at halftime. It was Fey's second interception of the season.
Chapman's offense hit its stride in the third quarter, first driving 73 yards on seven plays and getting a 33-yard touchdown run from sophomore RB Chad Milburn to give the Panthers a 10-7 lead. It was Milburn's first career score. The lead was short-lived however as Redlands returned the ensuing kickoff 83 yards for a touchdown to regain a 14-10 advantage.
A resilient Chapman traveled another 76 yards on its next possession, led by junior QB Bret Visciglia. The Panthers' playcaller was 5 of 5 for 57 yards passing and capped the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run to give Chapman a three-point advantage 17-14 at the end of the third quarter.
The Panthers had kept a potent Redlands' offense out of the endzone on six straight possessions until the Bulldogs scored the game-winner with 1:37 left in the game. The Chapman defense created havoc behind the line of scrimmage often on Saturday, totaling six tackles for loss and a pair of quarterback sacks. Freshman LB Wade Minshew led the way with eight tackles, including 2.5 for loss and a sack.
Redlands managed just 286 yards of offense, but converted when it needed to most. The Bulldogs were 10 of 16 on third downs and completed a 22-yard pass on a fourth-and-long on their final drive.
Chapman finishes the season with the same 4-5 record it had one year ago and 1-4 on the road in 2010.
by Doug Aiken
Sports Information Director
Boxscore: http://www.chapmanathletics.com/sports/fball/2010-11/files/cu-ur.htm